A Spark of Spiral Power
by Iggy the Strong and Free
Summary: A lonely Spiral Pilot who lives without reason and a sly girl with ulterior motives. They'll find themselves drawn to each other all while under threat from attack by the Anti-Spiral. Can they find each others as well as themselves before the hammer falls on the Spiral Races? Set during the war between the Spirals and the Anti-Spirals.
1. Chapter 1

Spiral energy. An infinitely useful and fickle resource. A spiral war party need not bring any fuel, but only maintain the morale of their soldiers to keep their war machines running.

The main problem facing engineers once spiral power was used to fuel war efforts was consistency. How could they keep spiral power flowing no matter the situation, even if their soldiers were outmatched and defeat seemed inevitable? Their solution was one as old as the human race.

Prostitutes.

Although "pleasure girls" was the more politically correct and widespread term, they weren't much different than their predecessors. When spiral power was first harnessed there was public outrage at such an immoral act becoming government protocol, but results spoke for themselves. Battalions who boycotted the use of pleasure girls didn't succeed in nearly as many missions at the others, and the practice was slowly taken in by the entire military and gradually desensitized to the population. At the time of the war against the Anti-Spiral, they were as accepted of a profession as a lawyer or politician. Disgraceful and disliked, but necessary.

During these wars, the _Vigilance_ was a dreadnought-class spiral battleship tasked with defending a sector of the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The minefield of space rocks was the perfect natural blockade against the Anti-Spiral, and Humans were not going to let an opportunity go wasted. Battleships were assigned to defend the belt at regular intervals and defend it at all costs.

The _Vigilance_ was knife-shaped, with the command station located at the top rear and the rest of the ship thrusting forward before coming to a sharp point. Artillery was located along the protruding edges of the ship, while sleeping quarters and other civilian services were located more frequently in the interior of the ship. In a cafeteria, specifically Cafeteria D, Akio Tetsuri wrestled with a stubborn appetite.

He poked a thin slice of meat ration with his fork absent-mindedly. Just by looking at it he knew he could not eat it without forcing it down. All around him, his fellow pilots had long since abandoned their meals. Now they occupied themselves with various testosterone-fueled activities varying from leg, arm, and full body wrestling to screaming arguments and, of course, flirting with the pleasure girls milling around the cafeteria. If they weren't doing any action mentioned prior, than they were most likely teasing and bullying fellow pilots, it created a certain pecking order among the soldiers and came as naturally to them as breathing. No one said a word to Akio, though.

Akio was a Daichi pilot and somewhat of a minor celebrity among his comrades. Daichi were tiny robots only five feet tall that were essentially heads with stubs for arms and legs. The incredible thing about Daichi mechs was first that their build was almost indestructible, second that they were the most efficient modern conduit for spiral power, and third that they could combine with any other mech to create a new one more powerful than the last two. Daichi pilots needed to know how to pilot a vast array of different ships and have the smarts to figure out completely new controls in the middle of combat. Only the skilled were chosen for Daichi pilots, and due to that only 2% of the pilots on the _Vigilance_ were Daichi pilots. To symbolize their rank, they wore their symbol around their neck on silver chain, the famous Core Drill.

"A Daichi pilot? Ooo~" A voice rang to his right in a light british accent. When Akio looked up at her he had to look through his own raven bangs, but his limited view was more than enough.

It was the cutest pleasure girl he had ever seen on any of his assignments. She has a heart shaped face, with a pointed chin but softer features near her eyes. Her skin was smooth porcelain that he swore he would have seen his reflection in it if he tried. Her hair was a wonderful confluence of gold and auburn, creating a shifting shade Akio could not pinpoint as any one colour.

"Yes, I am." Akio met her cloudy grey orbs and smiled politely.

"Is it true that Daichi all have drills strong enough to pierce mech armour?" A sultry smile reached her lips as she settled onto the bench beside him. "An impressive feature, but I was wondering if a Daichi pilot could lay to the same claim of an impressive drill..."

"I'm not interested." The same polite smile flickered for a moment for Akio returned his attention to his meager meat ration. He had never bedded a pleasure girl, and he did not plan on doing it any time soon. The girl huffed and a look of disappointment reached her face as she stood.

The woman took the rejection surprisingly well, and even advised in a motherly tone, "Alright, if you insist. Just remember the facts, if you want to fight like three of your regular self then you better find someone."

Akio returned his attention to his cold meal. Well, at least he looked like he did. In truth he was reanalyzing the controls and differences between the various mechs his Daichi could create, and even brainstorming new ones in his head. It was difficult to imagine what a Daichi might create when mashed with a random machine, but Akio had a hunch for predicting them and having the upper hand in battle.

It was good that he was smart, because Akio seriously lacked in other departments. During training back on Earth, soldiers had their spiral power output tested. They were left to calm down amidst their thoughts in a blank, windowless room for a whole hour before they were hooked up to the power reader. The pilots would then have to summon as much spiral power as possible. The controlled environment ensured a fair situation for each pilot to be scored in. Sadly, Akio scored dead last in his class. He remembered seeing a classmate named Erik that he had pegged a dunce stomp on his own toe and use the pain to output three times what Akio had. He was too calm, and rarely got riled up like Erik or his peers, let alone with the ease they showed.

"Why don't I show you around my bed tonight, eh sweet thing?" A voice from the past called out. Actually, it was _the_ voice from the past. When Akio checked over his shoulders, his suspicions were confirmed. Erik lay about ten feet to his left, with a leg up on the table. He was leaning on that with an elbow, and had a shit-eating grin on his face. His newest victim was the pleasure girl from before.

"No thank you." She lifted her nose and stepped around him. The rejection made a choir out of the nearby soldiers, who laughed without restraint at their teammate's misfortune,

"Listen here you little slut." Erik growled, latching onto her arm. "This is gonna happen regardless of what you think, and it'll be a lot more enjoyable for you if you don't resist."

"Let me go, this is wrong!" The woman stated firmly, fighting Erik's grip. She must have been stronger than he expected, because she broke free of his grip and took a step back before glaring him down.

"Are you deaf or something, lady?" Erik's disheveled blonde hair fell behind his head, reaching his shoulders.

"You're the one who I would assume is hard of hearing, Erik." Akio spoke up, surprising both of them. He was still sitting at the table, but had somehow appeared right beside them. "She rejected you twice, accept your fate and move on. I'm sure there's a lower level whore whose standards you fall within."

Erik's eyebrows lowered in anger, while the girl's raised in surprise. Most pleasure girls had some class and standards, but the lowliest of them were forced into the dirty, seldom used cargo bays. It was an area lacking cameras and filled with stowaways, where soldiers would sneak into to exchange various contraband, fight away from the eyes of their officers, and meet with pleasure girls.

"Akio, you bastard!" Erik clenched his teeth, but did no more. Striking a fellow soldier was bad, but striking a Daichi pilot was _really_ bad. "This is her job! If any of us refuse to do our jobs, we get shipped back to Mars on the next supply ship!"

"She is doing her duty, in fact." Akio placed his fork on his meat, finally abandoning it. He rose from his seat and grabbed her by the arm. "I'm taking her up on her offer, and bringing her to my room right now."

Whispers passed through the crowd. They had all heard Akio reject her, but Daichi pilots had first dibs on pleasure girls now that he changed his mind.

"Alright, she's yours for tonight." Erik huffed. "But tomorrow, you better get ready gal. Because it's gonna be a hell of a night."

"Let's go." Akio demanded, dragging her through the parting crowd and across the cafeteria. From here, it was only a short elevator trip and walk to Akio's dorm.

"Thank you." Lights flashed against their skin as the elevator rose. "He was a horrid being, that one."

"Yeah, Erik's a real fine gentleman. I'm sorry that he tried to corner you like that." Akio rubbed the back of his neck, under his hair. "Sorry I handled you rough."

"It's quite fine, I just never pegged you as the rough and aggressive type." Another sly smile reached her lips. Akio rolled his eyes as the elevator doors opened. Luckily, his room as only a few doors down.

"It's not much, but it's better than most." Akio said as the door shut behind him. The room was almost entirely coloured a dull cobalt, just like the rest of the ship. It was only as wide as the bed that sat at the far end of the room, and the only other furnishings were a small table and two folding stools. The wall above the bed was a window currently pointed towards Mars. The copper planet was a distance away now, seeming about the size of a moon. Akio immediately made for his bed and lay down on it, reaching for his reading glasses. With them on, he grabbed one of the two books in the room.

"How would you like to go about this? People have lots of different preferences, so we should discuss them beforehand." The girl laid her cardigan on his stool before fixing her hair.

"What's your name?" Akio asked, flipping through pages of mech schematics.

"Amber." She answered like the question was nothing more than filler.

"Well Amber, take no offense, but I haven't any desire to have sex with you." Akio said casually, not even looking up from his book.

"Having a change of heart?" Amber sunk onto a stool, crossing her legs with a sly smile. "Could it be your first time?"

"It's a long story." Akio muttered, like he was only half interested. "There have been way too many rumors about the way Erik treats pleasure girls for me to let you go to his room. Due to that, you can stay with me tonight. Although I won`t force you to stay, I can assure you that you'll be safe here."

Amber looked at the ground. "I've heard a lot of the same things; the girls talk a lot when we aren't working."

"Mhmm." Akio hummed while reading his book. Amber shifted in her seat; the silence was like a wall between them.

"Thank you for letting me stay the night." She gulped. Her soft eyes fluttered their gaze around the room, but found nothing extraordinary to look at. "Akio, was it?"

"Akio Tetsuri." He finished, running his finger over the schematics for the ship's main turrets. _I wonder if I could combine with these…_

"Japanese?" She asked curiously, to which he nodded. "I'm from Dublin, but I've always wanted to go to Japan." Akio did not reply and continued to read. The silence returned and Amber couldn't help but wonder if she could last all night.

"You're restless." Akio observed, to which she sheepishly admitted. "You've been doing all but this in another's room before, and expect it. Hell, when was the last time you've had a conversation that wasn't related to your job in some way?"

Amber blinked, he was right. Recently she had been so absorbed in the scene that she had forgotten the real reason she was here. She had been drunk on the high pay, the nights of fun with stunning specimens of men, and spending time with her fellow girls.

"You're a human, not a pleasure girl." Akio frowned at a schematic, holding it sideways. "Don't ever forget that. Try to find solace in the silence."

"Thank you again, Akio." She nodded at him.

"I'm going to go pick up my uniform from the wash, you're welcome to come with me or stay here."

"I think I'll try to find solace in the silence." She smiled, sly.

"Good luck." Akio grinned for the first time that day. He brought the uniform back to his room, though he usually kept it in his mech. Whenever he had to man it, even in an invasion, it was such a congested rush to leave the hangar, not to mention Daichi pilots always left last, that it was best to put it on while he was waiting in his mech. When he returned Amber was already sleeping in his bed. With a sigh, he retrieved his spare sheet and set up a place to rest on the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

_Anti-Spiral warships entering Sector V48. All pilots, man your mecha and enter standby._

The speaker above Akio's door buzzed with orders as the lights in his room, just as every light on the ship, began to flicker at regular intervals. It was six in the morning on the ship and the minor alarm system, designed to gather attention but not panic, was waking up every man and woman. The Anti-Spiral had been spotted by a sentinel or scout ship and it was now the duty of the soldiers to make sure the ship would not be caught by surprise.

Akio flung off his sheet, throwing it to the wall and not bothering to pick it back up. He was wearing a thin, tight, black sleeveless shirt and loose, baggy pants. He heard Amber stir but didn't speak to her. His mind only focused on the path between his room and the hangar, calculating the most efficient way to get there. It made it all the stranger when he stopped in the doorway, a rare action from him let alone during a standby order. He figured that when Amber awoke she was sure to be confused at his absence. She wasn't a child, incapable when left alone, but it didn't feel right to just leave. He had to say something, and he didn't have the time to write a note.

"Amber." He barked, firm but not angry, with the hopes to waken her. "Stay here. Don't follow the other girls to the cargo hold or the quarters; my room is closer to the center of the ship, safer." Without waiting for an answer, he stormed off. The Core Drill bouncing against his chest reminded him of his duty that he needed to return to. Akio treated every mission as if he was facing the Anti-Spiral himself. To him, a standby order might as well be Earth's final charge.

Other pilots joined his charge as he neared the hangar. They came from personal quarters, cafeterias, and game rooms, slipping around corners and fighting to be the fastest. Rumors and theories were quickly passed through the group, but Akio was deaf to the useless chatter. He distanced himself from them and focused on following the signs directing him to the hangar, though he already knew the way fine.

"Akio! I heard you earned a notch last night!" A fellow pilot named Bjørn jeered him. Every battalion of the _Vigilance_ ate, trained, and fought together until they were closer than kin. Akio was in the 24th Aerial Battalion with Bjørn, shown by the winged patch stitched into their uniform. Bjørn was a well-meaning Norwegian man whose blunt nature often made him misunderstood or disliked.  
"Is that really what's on your mind right now?" Akio gritted his teeth and refused to look anywhere but forward as he ran.

"Come on, it's just a standby order!" The group reached the door to the hangar and paused for it to open. "What was her name?" Bjørn managed to sneak in a question while they waited.

"Bjørn!" Akio scolded. Bjørn was taken aback by the sudden ferocity from Akio. His core drill shined even in the artificial light of the ship. Bjørn's eyes focused on it for a moment before he retreated his prodding questions.

"Sorry…" He mumbled. "Though if we wait too long, switch to my comm channel, okay?"

"Let's just focus on the task at hand." The doors opened at Akio's words, revealing the mecha of the 24th Battalion.

Creativity and individuality were paramount in the design of spiral war parties, a strange sight in a military. The uniforms were required to be full bodysuits, but they could be altered and colored in any way befitting the wearer. The mecha had been with the pilots since they began their training and over time had been coloured, cut, sharpened, combined, split, and altered in any way the pilot saw fit. Akio paid no heed to the other mech and focused on his Daichi. It was coloured red, with the facial features sporting a lighter pink. Other than that he had not changed any specifications from its factory form.

When Akio approached, his core drill glowed green. The eyes of his Daichi glowed green in response and the dome covering the head of the mech fell away and revealed his seat. He leapt inside and gripped the handles lightly. The dome was made for combat and once the controls were used it automatically whipped back into place, but Akio only touched the controls to fool it into blocking out the outside noise for him.

He hadn't modified his Daichi, or even named it, but that didn't mean he didn't know the way the little bot ran better than its maker. From the extra weight you had to put on the thruster block of switches to the metallic rubbing that resounded when he leaned south-southwest in his chair.

"Power flow 24% above minimum. No visible damage. Control test." As Akio whispered the checks to himself his hands worked the controls. He tested their sensitivity, checking just how far he had to move them to produce a stepping motion from the mech. "Controls are fine, moving to standby." With that out of the way, Akio flicked on the communicator to the 24th Battalion channel with a sigh.

A rush of boorish voices screeched from the speakers. The tones and word choice varied greatly but all seemed to be focused on the same thing.

"Akio's online!" One pilot signaled the rest.

"Congrats' man!"

"Good for you Akio, I could hear her moaning from my room!"

"I highly doubt that." Akio growled as he recalibrated the communications of the mech. It screeched for a moment before settling on its new channel. Akio waited for a few moments of silence before speaking. "Was it you that got them riled up?"

"Not on purpose." Akio could hear Bjørn smiling from the other end. "They're excited for you!"

"Excited to get off of all the details they think I'll give." Akio grumbled.

"Don't be so harsh, they're just guys being guys." Bjørn chuckled. "Alright ya prude, if you didn't sleep with her what did you two do all night? Did you talk her asleep?"

"Well, kind of. We just talked." Bjørn burst out laughing. "Then why'd you bother? We'd all figured you'd lost your balls before last night. If you didn't want her why'd you take her away?"

"They're leaving out the part of the story where Erik thought he could take her away no matter what she thought."

Bjørn whistled at the news. "Sounds just like him. Good thing White Knight Akio saved the day?"

"She would have kicked his balls behind his eyeballs if I hadn't stepped in." Akio allowed a small smile at the thought. "A lot less trouble if I stepped in."

"Well good for you. I was just bugging you before, but it's nice to see someone stepping in like that."

Bjørn let out a slow breath, and Akio imagined him leaning back in his artillery ship. After a few moments he spoke in a low, curious voice, "What was her name?"

"Amber." Akio didn't realize he was smiling. "She was British, though she said she was from Dublin. Had more personality than I've ever seen in a pleasure girl."

"Most are just in it for the money, fine with putting on a fake smile until they can take a ship home." Bjørn noted. "Maybe she's enjoying herself here."

"Enjoying herself?" The thought of a pleasure girl seeing it as any more than a job had never occurred to Akio.

"Think about it. They get to hook up with their choice of guys, they get great pay, plus all their meals are paid for and all. Some people just enjoy the finer pleasures of life, nothing wrong with that."

"Huh." Akio swallowed the foreign concept. To him, joy meant solving a tough problem, coming up with a great idea, or finishing a long book. He never understood those who "let loose" and found their joy from sex or alcohol.

"So, are you gonna try to be a repeat customer?" Bjørn asked with a smile. "Maybe if she has trouble sleeping she'll come back and start up a conversation with you."

"Yeah, maybe." Akio responded, only half listening. "She's… interesting. If I see her again, I'm gonna talk to her."

"Well I guess that's the closest thing you'll ever get to a crush." Bjørn snorted, but Akio wasn't listening. His eyes had gone wide and he looked down upon himself. He was still in his sleeping clothes.

"Shit." Bjørn shot to attention, Akio rarely swore. "I left my uniform in my room."

Bjørn burst out laughing, leading Akio to switch his comm's channel. His fingers were still before the button that would connect him to his room. His cheeks flushed and he pressed it.

" _Amber? Amber are you there?"_

A few moments, and then:

"Akio?"

" _Yes, it's me. I'm in my mech in the hangar right now. I… I forgot my uniform. I need it. Can you bring it down to my hangar?"_

Giggling was the only response Amber gave.

" _What's so funny?"_

"You really didn't think this through, did you? Imagine it. A pilot forgets his uniform. A pleasure girl walks through the hangar and gives it to him. We'd lose the battle because your friends wouldn't be able to stop laughing!"

Akio could feel the heat form his face now. _"Just… Just bring it here please. I'm right by the door, try not to be noticed."_

Amber continued to giggle. Rustling fabric sounded as he assumed she was gathering his uniform. The door shut and she left without a goodbye.

Akio's comm blinked green, most likely Bjørn looking to prod him more on the subject. With a sigh, Akio switched channel's again.

"You really had a walk of shame, came here in your pajamas!" Bjørn again.

"I usually have it in my mech, I just washed it last night." Akio held his head in his hands. Why was he getting so hot? His skin boiled and the air felt stuffy. With a flip of a switch, the canopy on his Daichi fell away and let the cool air hit his skin. It smelled sweet and refreshing compared to his cockpit, which had suddenly become claustrophobia-inducing.

"You're red as a tomato." Amber's voice surprised him. She was here already?! He had hoped to try to stop heaving before she came.

"Thank you." Akio said sharply, reaching to grab his uniform. Amber pulled it away with a smile.

"Not yet, I want to check out this bot." She climbed the side of the mech as if it were her own and slid inside with grace.

"Amber! This is a standby order; you can't be here!"

"Shh, you didn't want your friends seeing me right? Now which button seals the cockpit?"

He was sure he wasn't convincing her to leave easily, and he didn't want his friends seeing her in that time. With a defeated sigh, Akio flicked on the cockpit and closed away the outside world.

"Squishy, guess we've to cuddle~"

"No chance, move left!"

"Why can't I just sit on your lap?"

"Get behind the seat or I'm ejecting you!"

With a disappointed sigh, Amber settled into a position behind the seat, peering over Akio's shoulder.

"Now what does each of these buttons do?"

Before Akio could answer, a screeching voice took over his intercom.

 _Anti-Spiral warships within vicinity. All pilots are order to deploy and repel the enemy. I repeat, the Anti-Spirals are here. Deploy and defend this sector._

Akio turned white. It wasn't an ordinary standby order; he was going to fight today.

"Let's get 'em!" Amber seemed a bit more excited than him.

"I can't fight with you in here!"

"All eyes are on you guys now, you can't let me out. You'll be in deep shit if they see a pleasure girl leaving your cockpit!"

Akio bit his tongue. Why did she always have to make his life so much more difficult?

"Hold onto my safety straps so you don't bounce around. Don't get in my way and keep quiet!" Akio


	3. Chapter 3

Akio blasted out of the hangar last with a great view of the cluster of spiral warrior mechs. Amber cried out in excitement, a smile taking over her face as she clung to the back of Akio's seat. Akio's hushed her, turning on the comm channel and tuning into the chatter. The tumultuous speaker made it hard to catch much intelligible words - though the intelligence of the soldiers themselves didn't help – yet Akio managed to catch enough to rule out the idea of the Anti-Spiral already being here. With a slim hand, Amber flicked off the noise.

"Don't waste your brain cells on them. You don't need them anyway; you already have backup. I'm here." Amber winked playfully.

"If you're going to be my wingman, you can't be sticking your head in my direction." Akio pressed a button which turned the cranial cover of the Daichi transparent. "If you spot something that doesn't look right, yell." Amber repositioned herself, sitting backwards on both the top of Akio's seat and his head, though mostly the latter.

"Gosh, it's so beautiful…" Amber took a moment to watch colorful galaxies, stars, and nebulas as they passed through her viewing port. "With this kind of view and a pretty girl in your backseat, how can I be sure you're not gonna park this mech somewhere?" Her sultry grin found its way back to her face.

"Trust me, if I had a backseat we'd be using it right now." Akio gritted his teeth. His black hair was flattened to his cheeks from the weight of Amber on his head.

"Listen to yourself!"

"Hold on and don't say anything, I'm gonna open a line with Bjørn." Akio's dexterous fingers splayed out across his dashboard, quickly selecting a multitude of buttons that made the speaker come to life with a scratching noise.

"Akio?" Bjørn's Scandinavian accent came through the speakers. Akio's eyes found Bjørn's black heavy artillery mech within the cloud of soldiers. It had four, wide legs, made to mount to a planet or ship surface, with a large cannon mounted atop the head.

"Strap in Bjørn, we're transforming." Akio smiled, the rush was coming and he could barely wait. Being caught in a current of spiral energy as your mech underwent a mechanical reconfiguration was thrilling. His Daichi's arms and legs disappeared into its shell, while a drill as wide as the mech shot out underneath it. "Coming at you!"

"Show me what you can do." The smile infected Bjørn as well as he strapped in, bracing himself in his cabin.

Akio's mech slammed into Bjørn's, shaking both of their cabs and sending Amber flying forward. Psychedelic colours streamed around both of their mechs as the different pieces shifted and changed. Metallic screeching and grinding filled both their cabins as a completely new mech assembled. With a wave of its arms and an experimental pose, the new fighter was assembled.

It stood on two legs four times the height of a Daichi. Its armour was patterned black and red, with silver joints. The head was identical to Akio's Daichi, and one of the two arms was replaced with the cannon from Bjørn's mech.

"Not too bad!" Bjørn's lightly bearded face appeared on Akio's screen without prompt. His face went from excitement to confusion and then laughter. Akio blushed when he realized that his own cabin was being fed to Bjørn's screen. "Akio, is that her? I didn't know you were that smitten!"

"Hello!" Amber's smile nearly filled the screen, waving while Akio's face darkened a shade per second.

"This is Amber…" She could feel the heat come off Akio's face. "She snuck in and couldn't leave."

"Your secret is safe with me," Bjørn chuckled. His face shrunk on the screen until it disappeared.

"The good news is, it's a lot roomier now." Amber leaned back in her new chair. The entire back area was now transparent, a wide view of both the battlefield and sparkling stars. "How kind, thanks for the consideration."

"If you're going to be here, you might as well not be getting in my way," Akio didn't look at her when he spoke, his eyes were too busy taking in the new controls and dashboard design. The entire mech was a child of his spiral power, and so it seemed he only need guess what any particular control's designation was for it to do just that.

"Akio, duck!" Amber's sudden warning was barely enough to dodge the blaring red beam that shot over his mech's head.

"What was that?" Bjørn's face was shown desperately trying to look over his shoulder and spot the attacker. Akio couldn't blame him; he was trying to do the same thing.

"Coming at us hot left side, dash right!" Akio didn't hesitate and threw the right handle forward, sending the new mech flying right. A flash of metal and colour flew past his right viewport, so close it made the cabin shudder. It was in front of them now, a small black Daichi mech probably designed to mock the spiral opponents. Though it was small, Akio knew better than anyone the damage that a single one of them could do.

"We've got it in our sights, lock onto it while I warm it up!" Bjørn yelled. A crescendo whurr sounded as the cannon-arm of the mech fired up. The tiny black target began to dart about, beginning evasive maneuvers.

"It spotted us charging up!"

"I know that!"

"Then lock on to him!"

A series of thick blue beams of energy shot out towards the mech, barely missing it as it dodged and flew away. It disappeared above their viewports, followed by a great shaking of their combined mech. Akio swiped and spun in an attempt to knock it away, but it proved impossible to pinpoint, like a mosquito you can hear but not see.

"That lookout of yours could be useful right now, Akio!"

"I can't find him either!" Amber defended.

"It could be a stolen Daichi." Akio concluded. "That would mean it has all the same specs. Even if it's fast, it can do barely anything to us on its own."

"What would it have to combine with?" Bjørn asked.

Everyone went silent for a moment. Akio was the first to realize, his hand flying to the comm to warn the others. It was too late, for the moment it switched to the public channel he could hear the scream of a man.

"Down there, by the ship engines!" Amber spotted. Akio saw it too, a black daichi had hijacked a friendly mech and was in the process of transforming. The man that screamed had been jettisoned out into empty space, though luckily other mechs rushed to his aid.

"Get it before it can transform!" Akio threw forward the main controls, thrusting the mech forward faster than it was meant to go. "Lock on now Bjørn!"

"Done!" The black Daichi now had a set of crosshairs hovering over it on Akio's screen.

"Firing!" Akio yelled, smashing a fist down on a button. More blue lights streamed out of their cannon, which was now glowing red, and coalesced on the locked on target, nearly sure of hitting. They did hit, sending the daichi back and stopping him from completing his transformation. The friendly mech now stood out, separate from it.

"Whew." Bjørn slumped down in his seat. "That was close."

Their cabin rumbled again, causing each of them to shoot back to attention.

"One is trying to board us!" Amber exclaimed. Moments later she dived back into Akio's seat.

"What the hell? Stay on your own side!" A drill slammed through their cabin and into the seat that Amber was sitting on not moment before, highlighting her decision.

"It's trying to force its way into our programming to take us over!"

"See if you can stop it!" Akio's mind and eyes scrambled over the available controls, trying to think of something that could shake off the enemy. Nothing came to mind, an incredibly frustrating realization for him. He always had an idea, that was why he was a Daichi pilot. He could think smarter and faster than a normal soldier, but not he was dumbstruck as a large drill was about to bisect his mech and take over, probably jettisoning them all out too. Amber shoved him out of the way suddenly, gaining a better position in the heap that the front seat had turned into. She threw off his hands and her hands made it to the dashboard. Her fingers danced across it not unlike Akio's, hitting a selection of buttons. It only took a few for Akio to realize what she was doing.

Amber was forcing the mech apart.

With the flick of the last switch, the two mech's separated. Bjørn was fired off downwards while Akio and Amber firing upwards. With how interlocked the mech was before, the enemy daichi was left drilling into nothing in space.

"Nice move, gal!" Bjørn whooped.

"He's too fast for a big mech like that." Amber panted, even though any of them hadn't really done any physical exertion.

"If we split apart, we can match its speed while Bjørn takes it down." Akio finished. It was brilliant really. Anything was brilliant to Akio if it was thought of in a situation that stumped him. "Bjørn, mount on the Vigilance for stability. We're gonna dogfight this thing."

Amber climbed back on top of Akio, sitting on his head again. This time he swore she shuffled her butt around much longer than necessary.

"It's there." Amber spotted it once again. "Trying to get behind Bjørn."

Akio shot off after it, faster than the previous mech ever could. The moment the opponent saw them racing towards it, it shot off upwards. Akio was now able to follow, and chased it with a brilliant blue stream coming from his engine. He matched it loop for loop and dive for dive, making sure to never lose sight of it.

"I can't lock onto it if it's moving like that, try to send it directly at me." Bjørn explained. Akio nodded, since now they had live streams sent to the other's screen. He cut it off when it tried to turn, making sure it could go nowhere but directly at the massive Vigilance, and Bjørn.

"Make sure it doesn't get away, I don't want to hit you instead."

"Don't worry about that." Akio flicked a cover away and pressed a button down. The hands of his Daichi disappeared and were replaced by small drills. They spun and extended, sinking into the black daichi's back and keeping it in place.

"Firing!" Bjørn reported. From the barrel end, the shots that Bjørn's mech made were just blue light that were too bright to look at. Akio had no hesitation in covering his eyes, he trusted Bjørn's accuracy. Sure enough, the weight on his drills went away. He opened his eyes, pulling up his mech moments before it could slam into the Vigilance.

"We got it!" Amber exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air and hurting Akio's neck. Strangely, he didn't seem to mind right now.

"Yeah..." Akio chuckled. "Yeah, we did."

"It doesn't look like there are any more of those." Bjørn said through the speaker. "There were five, maybe ten in all. They were probably send to test us; see how we would react."

"Seems logical enough, except for those black daichi." A drop of sweat fell down Akio's face. "Those things were totally new to us, and as far as I know no other battleships have encountered them either. If it was just a test, why not send something a little more disposable?"

"That's why... Akio, look at the one we hit." Amber gulped.

Akio looked and couldn't believe what he saw. A human pilot in a black suit hung out of the cabin, dead, killed by him. What's more, the mark of the Akio's battalion was embroidered upon his chest.


	4. Chapter 4

"It's ridiculous!" Bjorn paced up and down the small, grey holding cell. "We didn't do anything!"

"That Daichi…" Amber sat up the corner, eyes downcast.

"Calm down, both of you. We are hardly in trouble; they are most likely just taking precautions." Akio gulped. He hoped he was

The heavy door swung open, revealing a burly man with an array of badges varying so greatly in color size that it was hard to keep track of them-it didn't help that every badge was polished and reflected even the grey light of the holding room.

"Daichi pilot." His white eyes lowered on Akio. The core drill made him easy to pick out. "Come with me."

Akio looked back at Amber and Bjorn before exiting the room. He followed the large man, unable to see where they were headed around his huge bulk. He knew the ship well, though, and was able to keep track of their position well enough. They were heading to a questioning area. He doubted it was because they thought him a criminal, they hadn't even cuffed him, it was likely that an interrogation room was simply the most convenient place to speak to him. A door heavier than the first was swung open with ease and revealed a white haired woman with a long white coat draped over her shoulders. A large 24 was stitched onto the back, as well as featured over her heart. She was tall and imposing, with only the slightest hint of femininity in her stance.

"Akio." Diana smiled.

"Commander." Akio held his hand over his core drill in a quick salute. Daichi pilots had a different one than standard soldiers.

The large man sat down on Diana's side of a large white table and gestured for Akio to stand on the other side. It seems the interrogated weren't given the luxury of a chair. Akio considered himself lucky though, he saw the spot on the table where they would usually attach handcuffs to.

"Akio Tetsuri." The white-pupiled man thumbed through a folder that sat on the table. "Japanese. Born in Kyoto. Twenty-one years of age. Volunteered for the Human Spiral Army at nineteen. Identified as a Daichi candidate during basic training." His unnerving eyes focused on Akio. "Is all of this accurate?"

"Yes, sir." Akio said.

"Is it also accurate that you answered the Minor Level Anti-Spiral Alarm that sounded at o'600 today?"

"Yes, sir."

"Is it also accurate that you combined with Bjørn Jorgenson and worked together to take down this mech?"

"Yes, sir."

"At any point did you, or any of your comrades become aware of the identity of the pilot of the black Daichi?"

"No, sir."

"Can you tell me why you switched off your communications immediately upon entering combat?"

"Sir, I-"

"While you are at it, why don't you enlighten me on why you were followed by a pleasure girl when you left you Daichi?"

"Please." Diana held up a hand. "You're worrying my soldier. You're here to question him concerning the black Daichi, leave the battle tactics of my battalion to me." The large man frowned and glared at her. Diana remained firm. If Akio had to guess, she had just overstepped her authority.

"Riding with pleasure girls is against protocol." The large man huffed, sending visible puffs of air out his nostrils.

"And not your concern." Diana's frozen blue gaze locked onto him. "Those matters are left to Battalion Commanders. Don't trouble yourself with petty infractions. Tell him about the Black Daichi pilot."

The man huffed again, stronger this time. The folder's papers blew about, one of which he snatched out of the air. It had another profile on it.

"The pilot was identified to be Aaron Wu. He went missing on a patrol twelve days ago." Akio nodded. He didn't know the man personally, but he remembered hearing the news. "I think you can understand why this is incredibly troubling."

"Yes, sir." Akio dipped his head.

"He didn't have twelve days of rations when he left, and he was known to pilot a purple Daichi. Not black." Diana added.

"It seems you have nothing of use to tell me." The man closed the folder and tucked it under his arm. It seemed tiny held up against his huge body. As he rose to leave, he turned to Akio. "Is there anything else you'd like to report, Tetsuri?"

"No. Sir." Akio gulped.

Without excusing himself or a goodbye, the man left. The room shook when he slammed the door.

Diana let out an extended sigh and lounged back in her chair. "Sorry about that, he's from Command. You know the type." With a hanging arm, she tapped the seat of the now vacant chair. Akio took the hint and sat with her. "Akio… Why were you riding with a pleasure girl? That's reckless, especially for you."

His face steamed. "Forgive me Commander! She climbed in against my wishes, and when the signal came to launch I didn't want to disobey."

"What was she doing in the hangar?" From the inside of her coat, Diana retrieved a long, thin, electric pipe. As Akio spoke, she puffed on it.

"I… I forgot my uniform and asked her to bring it." Akio was sure all this steam from his face would turn the room into a sauna at any moment.

Diana choked on her pipe vapor and began to cough. "You took a pleasure girl to your bed?"

"Yes, Commander…"

"Ha!" She raised the pipe in the air in triumph. "Twenty members of the battalion just lost a bet to me."

"Pardon, Commander?"

"They thought you were gay, you see." She drew from her pipe through a smile. "And were willing to put money on it."

"I'm afraid you haven't won anything, ma'am. We just talked. I slept on the floor."

Diana paused. With a smoky sigh, she put her pipe back. "I knew it was too good to be true. It is you, after all. You're the only soldier under my command who hasn't fancied me, tried to sleep with me, or dreamed of it."

"Commander, may I speak freely?"

"Drop the 'commander' and go for it."

"Diana, I do truly enjoy my time with Amber. The pleasure girl, that is. She's more interesting and deeper than the others. But, when I was piloting, she was something more. She knew schematics and spotted for me. Even my spiral output went up with her, if my Daichi's records are anything to go off of."

"What are you asking, Akio?" Diana asked carefully.

"Is it possible for pleasure girls to become pilots?"

Diana sat up straight in her chair. "That is a… difficult question. They don't have the training you do, they're uncertified. She'd need approval, and it's unlikely to ever happen. I'm sorry."

"Alright." Akio said, downtrodden. Diana had never seen him worked up about anything.

"That being said, if you feel this pleasure girl is improving your performance than I wholeheartedly encourage you to spend more time with her. A pleasure girl warming your bed could mean victory or defeat for a battalion." She meant what she said, of that Akio was sure. In the battalion there were rumors she has pleasure boys enter her room every day, sometimes multiple.

"Yes, ma'am. I mean, Diana."

"Also, don't let the others know I let you call me Diana." She clapped him on the shoulder.

* * *

"We shouldn't be here..." Akio grumbled, looking over his shoulder as they walked.

"It's the middle of the night, don't be such a worry wort." Amber pinched him in the bum, earning a sharp yelp from Akio and a giggle from her. "Plus you said that we couldn't get in any real trouble, right?"

"The ship is at the lowest level of security right now, and the reports from the other spiral races have been hopeful so far," Akio mumbled. With deft hands he took out his core drill and inserted it into a slot near a door, opening it silently. "Only Daichi pilots are allowed to perform solo training exercises at this hour. Just remember that we are even after this!"

"Yaay!" Amber didn't seem to hear him, instead stepping through the doorway with glee.

The pair made their way to Akio's nearby daichi. Its eyes glowed green immediately, reacting to Akio's core drill which also glowed through his shirt. He got in first, the canopy opening when he touched it. He settled in comfortably and began to recommend a place for Amber when she slid in and placed herself in his lap. She shuffled her butt around with a devilish grin before she was comfortable and satisfied.

"Don't get settled, you're not staying there..." Akio grumbled.

"Oh but I am." Amber looked back at him with raised eyebrows. "You owe me, remember?"

"But- you-!" Akio turned red, much to Amber's amusement. "I appreciated your help before... but is this really necessary?"

"Oh but it is!" Amber gave one last good butt wiggle over his lap for good measure. "Now let's get out of here!"

With a growl and a grumble, Akio lightly flipped the switch that would close the canopy. With Amber so close to him, they still had plenty of room inside the usually cramped mech.

"Power flow 54% above minimum." Akio spoke to himself as he tested the controls. Other than the power flow being above average, all was well. "Slight damage to the left arm. Control test." He checked the sensitivity of the controls, seeing just how far he had to move them to produce a stepping motion from the mech. "Controls are fine, moving to launch."

"Don't be so formal, this supposed to be a date Akio!"

"Stop. This isn't a date." Akio's patience with her antics was waning.

"Why do you play with my heart like this?!" Amber took on a face of false hurt. With a roll of his eyes, Akio threw forward the controls and sent his mech flying through the hanger. The hangar doors opened for him when he neared and he shot out, streaming a green jet behind his mech all the while.

"What's with the canopy?" Amber tapped it experimentally. It was frustratingly opaque; unlike the last time she had ridden out here. "I asked to see the stars, not the inside of your daichi. Though I wouldn't mind that either~."

"I can't pilot this thing by sight thanks to you..." Akio grumbled. He was referencing a small live feed screen on the side of the canopy to fly, with Amber blocking his front visibility.

With a lurch, the Daichi halted still.

"What the hell? Were we hit!?" Amber panicked.

"Calm down, that was me." Akio said. The Daichi was firmed planted in an asteroid, drilled in securely. With their new foundation, the mech seemed much more stable, while before it could lurch or twist if you moved too much while it was free-floating. It was only now he flipped the switch that turned the canopy transparent. It shifted from grey to the night sky, and Amber gasped.

The stars and galaxies were just as beautiful as the last time she saw them. Looking at them through a tiny window on the side of the ship had nothing on a full 360 view of the entire night sky. Greatest of all of them was a bright white comet searing through the sky, just above the Vigilance in her vision.

"Akio! It's beautiful!" She shifted to sit across his lap, leaning back and staring up.

"You said you wanted to see the stars. Alice sent out a friendly reminder to watch the skies tonight because a comet was passing by, I thought we could see it closer up." Without warning, Amber wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into her chest. The sincerity of the action was lost on Akio, who immediately waved the action off as a mere bid for balance while trying to stay steady on his lap. Regardless, his stomach began to twist and his face blush. With a deft movement, his own seat lurched and leaned back, escaping Amber's clutches and putting them in a plus-sign position of sorts.

With a lurch, the Daichi halted still.

"What the hell? Were we hit!?" Amber panicked.

"Calm down, that was me." Akio said. The Daichi was firmly planted in an asteroid, drilled in securely. With their new foundation, the mech seemed much more stable, while before it could lurch or twist if you moved too much while it was free-floating. It was only now he flipped the switch that turned the canopy transparent. It shifted from grey to the night sky, and Amber gasped.

The stars and galaxies were just as beautiful as the last time she saw them. Looking at them through a tiny window on the side of the ship had nothing on a full 360 view of the entire night sky. Greatest of all of them was a bright white comet searing through the sky, just above the Vigilance in her vision.

"Akio! It's beautiful!" She shifted to sit across his lap, leaning back and staring up.

"You said you wanted to see the stars. Alice sent out a friendly reminder to watch the skies tonight because a comet was passing by, I thought we could see it closer up." Without warning, Amber wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into her chest. The sincerity of the action was lost on Akio, who immediately waved the action off as a mere bid for balance while trying to stay steady on his lap. Regardless, his stomach began to twist and his face blush. With a deft movement, his own seat lurched and leaned back, escaping Amber's clutches and putting them in a plus-sign position of sorts.

They spoke no words after that. Amber didn't tease him, verbally or physically, and Akio didn't grumble, complain, or reprimand her. They simply leaned back, draped over each other, and watched the comet crawl across the sky. It was all brilliant white, shaped like an arrow with long tails streaming behind it.

A smile began to tug at Akio's lips. A pleasant, content smile that was born from truly enjoying himself, a rare occasion for him. He was in complete solace right now. The ship was far away alongside the multitude of pilots he could hardly bear, and it was highly unlikely for him to receive any communication from them. All that existed in this tiny little world he made was him, Amber, and the comet streaking across the sky. Perhaps the moment would be as fleeting as the comet, a rare, joyous event that comes without word and isn't seen again for years at a time. Or perhaps the comet was an omen, one of bad things to come, or one signaling a new era. Regardless, those were all thoughts for another time to Akio. He wasn't in his own head, hypothesizing and analyzing, for once.

He stared at nothing more than the white comet, had no one with him but Amber, and was content.


End file.
